New Year’s Healthy Lifestyle Checklist!

If you made a resolution to live a healthier lifestyle but are unclear about what that really entails - you’ve come to the right place!

For something to become part of your lifestyle means you’ve made it a consistent habit. Your morning coffee is a habit because for many years you have woken up and poured yourself a cup. You don’t stress or have think about doing it because it’s just part of your daily routine! Exercise, eating well, and other healthy habits work the same way. With practice and deliberate intention, over time you will do them automatically as they become part of your lifestyle and daily routine.

Regardless of your age, goals, fitness level, or preferred physical activity, to make permanent changes in your health and fitness, there are a few non-negotiable lifestyle habits you have to adopt! So which habits do you need to start living a healthier lifestyle? Find out in our healthy lifestyle checklist below!

To life a healthy lifestyle you must…

1. Sleep Well

Sleep is one of the most underrated and most important health habits! Your body needs quality sleep to digest, grow muscle, repair tissues and synthesize hormones. Rest supports a calm mind and allows for better concentration and memory. Poor sleep habits up your risk for depression, heart disease, and inflammation and can decrease your immunity. Sleep well and feel better! Aim for 7-8 hours each night.

2. Hydrate

To live a healthy lifestyle you must drink adequate amounts of water; 2-3L minimum each day and more on days when you participate in exercise or other activities. Your body needs water to absorb and transport nutrients, maintain body temperature, cleanse your organs, and flush out waste. Drinking more water (and no, coffee doesn’t count!) is one of the easiest and most effective ways to improve your health.

3. Eat a nourishing, whole food diet

If you want to live a healthy lifestyle, you can’t do it without a healthy diet! The goal of healthy eating is to eat balanced, not restrictive! Choose whole-foods such as vegetables, fruits, healthy fats/oils, nuts, seeds and lean meats as they provide energy, vitamins and minerals, and antioxidants. If you are consuming poor quality, packaged, food-like substitutes you are missing out on many essential nutrients your body needs to protect you against disease. Living a healthy

lifestyle means staying away from fake, fast, or packaged foods!

4. Avoid harmful substances

A healthy lifestyle means your are conscious of all the non-food substances you put in your body. This means avoiding harmful substances such as tobacco products and other drugs and limiting (or completely avoiding) alcohol. This also extends to limiting intake of unnecessary prescriptions, supplements such as performance enhancing drugs or fat burners, or other non-natural substances that can be harmful to your health.

5. Move Daily

Exercise and functional movement is another essential component of a healthy lifestyle. You can move your body in many ways, for many purposes! Choose higher intensity cardiovascular exercise to burn fat and improve your heart health or resistance training to improve muscle tone and strength. Lower intensity training such as yoga or pilates can improve posture, core strength and flexibility. There are countless forms of exercise and choosing a combination of training styles will reduce your risk of injury and keep you healthy and moving for a long time.

6. Take care of your Mind

Just as important as your physical health is your mental health (and really, the two are not separate!). A healthy lifestyle includes taking care of your mind by reducing stress, practicing mindfulness, and connecting with people who have a positive impact on you. Yoga and other meditative practices are great for improving mental clarity and helping you stay in tune with what is really important to you. True health isn’t just dependant on how you eat and exercise; it is also affected by how you think and feel. Pay attention to what’s going on in your head and your heart to truly achieve a healthy life.

When you value the improvements these habit bring to your life, and do not give in to your excuses for not doing them, this is when you truly start living a healthy lifestyle! To get started on your healthy lifestyle ….. call us @VIP